Analytics, Economics, Estonia, Good for Business, Tourism

More active travelling boosted both the export and the import of tourist services.

Last year was a record year for the accommodation sector. The number of accommodated tourists grew by 13.5% in annual comparison to 2.7 million and the number of overnight stays increased even more, by nearly 15%, writes LETA.

The number of foreign tourists staying at Estonian accommodation establishments increased by 15.6% to 1.8 million and a slightly stronger growth was recorded in the number of overnight stays.

Both the number of accommodated tourists and that of overnight stays reached new record levels. Tourists from Russia, Britain and Finland accounted for most of the increase in the number of foreign tourists.

As reported, in April 2012, 205,000 tourists stayed in the accommodation establishments of Estonia, which was 5% more than in April last year, according to the data of Statistics Estonia.

In Estonia, 143,600 foreign tourists and 61,500 domestic tourists used the services of accommodation establishments, whose number increased 7% and 2%, respectively, as compared to April of the previous year.

Two thirds of foreign tourists using the services of accommodation establishments came from neighboring countries Finland, Latvia and Russia. Compared to April of the previous year, 6% more tourists from these countries stayed in accommodation establishments.

The average cost of a guest night in an accommodation establishment was 31 euros and was three euros more expensive than in the same period of the previous year.